Fauquier County Sheriff Robert Mosier said Sunday that after a daylong manhunt, murder suspect Levi Norwood, 17, was arrested in Durham, North Carolina, Saturday on suspicion of shoplifting at a Target.
Norwood was charged with two counts of murder in the killing of his mother, Jennifer Norwood, 34, and his 6-year-old brother, Wyatt. Authorities also said on Friday he shot his father, Josh, who escaped and managed to call for help.
Norwood gave a false name at the time of his arrest, Mosier said, but police were able to connect him with media reports to determine he was a suspect in the Midland, Virginia murder case.
At the time, he was attempting to shoplift a backpack, clothes and hair dye from the Target, police said.
The stolen red Toyota Camry the police said he used to escape to North Carolina was found near the store.
The weapon hasn’t been found, but the car hasn’t been checked yet, Mosier said.
Word on whether the murder weapon is in the car won’t be released until the vehicle is in the possession of Fauquier County deputies. Mosier expects the transfer to take place within a few days.
Norwood is being held in North Carolina until he can appear before a judge.
Commonwealth’s Attorney Scott Hook said he hopes, given the circumstances, that an extradition arrangement can be done quickly.
Both Virginia and North Carolina are a part of the same interstate extradition agreement, Hook said. He expects additional charges will be tacked on to two murder charges.
Frank Finn, an assistant superintendent of Fauquier County Public Schools, said the school system will make Liberty High School and Mary Walter Elementary School open to the community for counseling as a resource Monday in light of the incident.
